THE year 2017 was not a great year for German racing. In recent years, German-bred, trained and owned horses have won the Arc, the King George (twice), the Ganay and the Melbourne Cup.

In 2017, the major international successes came in Turkey, when the four-year-old Wonnemond, trained in Düsseldorf by Sascha Smcrzek, won the Topkapi Trophy, and in New York, when the five-year-old Red Cardinal, trained by Andreas Wöhler but Irish-bred and an import from Britain, won the Belmont Gold Cup.